Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil (Free of Charge While Supplies Last)

Does life have you down? Are you experiencing unwelcome bouts of anxiety. Do you see yourself as unsuccessful? If so, are you looking to turn that anxious frown upside down and become the success you always dreamed of becoming? Then look no further. Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil is the answer to your prays. Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil is specifically designed to alleviate anxiety and unhappiness while drawing success your way. And as a bonus feature, Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil  includes a mantra (Cupahay Tinrez) that, when recited, will increase the speed at which serenity, happiness and success begin to flow into your life. While you may be put off by the amateurish design of Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil, its potency will amaze you. How much would you pay for such a miraculous item - 5 dollars, 25 dollars, 25,000 dollars? Certainly, no monetary value can be assigned to such a powerful magical tool. Yet, on account of the magnanimous nature of its creator, Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil can be yours FREE of charge. Simply download the above Sigil, print it and hang it in a prominent place in your home or office in order to reap the rewards it will bestow upon you.

Disclaimer: Karmaghna's Talismanic Sigil is inert. Batteries not included.

A Working Sigil

Body Magic and Temporary Tattoos Revisited

 

 

Several weeks ago I blogged about a method of utilizing liquid eyeliner to create a temporary tattoo that could be used in a magical working (read that here). Since that time I have employed that method of tattoo construction to work a bit of body magic (which is, by the way, manifesting far better than anticipated). Consequently, I think it would be a good idea to offer some comments regarding that method.

First, since I did not have tracing paper, I took the suggestion of video #1 and used wax paper as a medium to transfer the tattoo onto my arm. Unfortunately, no matter what drawing device I used (liquid eyeliner, ballpoint pen, sharpie marker), I could not get the image to transfer to my skin. So I give the wax paper technique a thumbs-down! I simply had to free-hand the image.
 

Second, the liquid bandage used to seal the tattoo actually absorbed the eyeliner and caused it to smear slightly. This was not an issue until the liquid bandage dried and started to crack in places my skin stretched during movement. As the liquid bandage cracked, it actually lifted the tattoo off the skin. If any of the bandage flaked away, it took a bit of the tattoo with it. Of course, I have to admit that I bought the cheapest liquid eyeliner I could find and the type I purchased was not water-proof, so that probably led to some of my negative results. For me, the biggest drawback to using liquid bandage to seal the tattoo is that I “lost” the tattoo when it came time to remove the bandage to fix/repair the tattoo. If the tattoo is only going to be on your skin for a short time, this is not an issue. However, since my tattoo will be on my body for weeks or possibly months, I find it inconvenient to have to completely redraw it each time I want to spruce it up.

I have found that simply drawing the tattoo with liquid eyeliner and setting it with baby powder is sufficient to keep my tattoo visible for about 24 hours, if I am able to keep it dry. Near the end of the 24 hour period (i.e., sometime the next day) I redraw the tattoo using the faded lines that still remain visible. 

   

Body Magic and Temporary Tattoos

 

I am currently in the beginning stages of planning out some body magic and thought it would be helpful if I placed one or more appropriately designed sigils on my body during the course of my working. There are numerous ways this may be accomplished. One could make such temporary magical tattoos using ink pens, markers, paints, etc. If one is going to use these items on the body for a short amount of time, they are probably not going to cause much harm, except for a possible allergic reaction. However, since I am planning to keep the sigil on my body for an extended period of time, I am somewhat concerned over the possible toxicity of any substance I would leave on my skin. I found quite a bit of disagreement on the internet (go figure!) regarding the safety of using pen and marker to mark the body.   While most of the ordinary pens and markers of today are labeled “non-toxic,” they are only declared to be so when used appropriately (e.g., when used on paper, poster board, etc.). Since “skin illustration” is not included among the “appropriate” uses for these items, I am somewhat cautious about their use on my body. After looking around I found a technique for making temporary tattoos that utilizes liquid eyeliner. Since eyeliner is intended to be placed on the skin, I figure it’s one of the better choices with respect to safety. Additionally, as some of the instructional videos illustrating this technique demonstrate, they can look very much like an authentic black/uncolored tattoo.

The items needed for this type of temporary tattoo are:

1. Liquid eyeliner

2. Powder

3. Tracing paper/wax paper (for the non-artist like me)

4. Liquid or spray bandage

5. Rubbing alcohol.    Although neither of the videos linked below shows this, you might consider cleaning the area where you are placing the tattoo with alcohol beforehand.

Rather than try to explain the technique, I have included below two videos that adequately demonstrate this method for making temporary tattoos.

When I begin my body magic, this is the technique that I will be utilizing. If you use another method of generating temporary tattoos, please share it in the comments. 

 

Big Magick With Teeny Tiny Candles

Candle Magick can be a powerful tool in any magickal practitioner’s arsenal. In fact, I’ve recently been incorporating more Candle Magick into my spellwork and can personally attest to its efficacy. Nevertheless, candles make me nervous…well, burning candles anyway. If you’ve been around the occult corner once or twice you have undoubtedly heard of at least one candle mishap. I just can’t bring myself to let a candle fully burn for several hours or even days knowing that it will be unattended for much of that time, even when taking special precautions. For spells that require a large candle I’ve ended up extinguishing the candle when it could not be attended to and then reigniting it again when it could. While this method works, it breaks up the energy of the work and takes a hell of a long time to complete the working. Since I am an eclectic and not a traditionalist, I have in the past substituted a tealight for what would have typically been a larger candle. I simply carved my intent into the top of the tealight with a needle and dressed the top of the tealight with oil, moving in a clockwise direction for drawing things near and a counter clockwise direction for keeping things at bay. But even tealights burn for hours…too long for my comfort. So, recently I went to my local magical supply store (Wal-Mart) and picked up several packs of “birthday” candles.

 

As you can see from the picture above, they come in a variety of useful colors.
 

While I can’t carve my intent upon them as one typically does with a larger candle, I still dress the candle with oil. As a substitute for carving the candle I include a personalized sigil within the working and usually place it near or under the candle. Below is a picture of a recent working showing my minimal setup.

 

 

 For me there is really no better alternative. These small candles fully burn in about 15 minutes. This short burn time allows my work to be completed during periods when I am able to babysit the flame.  The esthetic of these small candles does, at least for me, pale in comparison to the more majestic candles. Neverthless, the completion of my spell with a fully burned candle and peace of mind far outway any esthetic. So, if you’re nervous about leaving a candle burn for hours in your home, give these tiny candles a try for your next big magick.

   

A Kurukulla Sigil Working

The above photo is a derivative of Shakira Rock in Rio 08 003 by Andres.Arranz. Permission granted under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Spain license.

Peas In A Pod Honey Jar Spell (aka, A Magical Clusterfuck Spell For Ailing Families)

In a blog post over at Strategic Sorcery Jason Miller describes a house cleansing working he undertook and articulates that the whole operation, for those coming from either a Christian or Buddhist background, would appear to be a clusterfuck (original post here). While I respect Jason and his work, you should know that you will never get a similitude of a clusterfuck here.  Here, you will get the real thing! While I have no qualms performing clusterfuck magick, I do my damndest to avoid allowing my magick to slip into being a chicken-goat-fuck.* Now, for those of you who know not the dreaded “chicken-goat-fuck,” this cursed event has been defined as:

A chicken goat fuck is a situation so hopelessly chaotic that you can only sit back and laugh (or weep, depending on your sensibilities). It's identical to a clusterfuck except in terms of scale; a chicken goat fuck is what you've got when a clusterfuck goes bad.(CGF source)

So, I take pride in my magical clusterfucks. While indeed clusterfucks, they are (I hope) clusterfucks with style and efficacy.

For those of you who are into clusterfuck magick or who feel that they can learn something from clusterfuck magick, I will present a recently created magickal clusterfuck spell below. Before doing so, however, I must first set the stage for my operation by talking briefly about families. Sometimes, family members do not get along. Sometimes, they do not get along even when love is shared between them. Sometimes, the bad days can outnumber the good and chip away at the love that remains. I know this because that family is my family. For whatever reason, my family has entered into the “dark night of the soul.” In fact, we have been there for some time. While there is recognition of this fact among all members of my family, we have been unsuccessful in remedying the situation. So, being the magician that I hope one day to be, I thought our situation calls for some magical sweetening. To sweeten our relationships with one another I chose to create a spell based upon an adaptation of a Hoodoo honey jar spell. While honey jar spells are traditionally utilized to bring forth a lover, my adaptation is designed to foster the enhancement of loving-kindness between members of my family. So, without delay here is how I perform a Peas In A Pod Honey Jar Spell (aka, A Magical Clusterfuck Spell For Ailing Families).

Essential Material:

Glass jar with lid

Enough honey to fill jar

uncooked peas (one for each family member…yourself included)

toothpicks

Green thread

Green permanent marker or paint

Permanent markers or paints the color of which corresponds to the astrological color of each family member.

A sweet/ flowery smelling tealight candle

Non-essential/optional material:

These items can be anything you choose that will enhance your working and give the spell some added oomph.

Spell Preparation:

Pea Preparation:

Take one uncooked pea for each family member and pierce it with a toothpick and set somewhere to dry.

Once the peas are dry, remove the toothpicks and place a pea under each family member’s mattress so that it is underneath each as they sleep (don’t forget yourself). By doing this the peas will become “associated” with each family member. I would suggest locating the peas near the corners of the beds as the dried peas sometimes crush if directly slept on. After a week’s time retrieve the peas and string them together with green thread.

Jar Preparation:

On the lid of a glass jar paint/draw the seal of Venus in green.

Paint or draw a green ring around the jar near the center.

After the green paint dries, paint/draw a symbol/sigil to represent each family member (in a color that corresponds to the astrological color of each) along the green line. Let dry.

Putting It Together:

Once the peas and jar are ready, fill the jar with honey and submerge the “necklace” of peas into the honey. Add anything else that will give strength to the working and seal the jar with its lid.

Spell Activation:

On Friday during a Venus hour, light a sweet/flowery smelling tealight candle on top of the jar and take some time to visualize your desired goal (i.e., you and your family members acting in a loving and kind manner toward one another).  At the end of the Venus hour, blow out the candle and preserve the jar in a safe place. Repeat the spell activation whenever needed.

*I wish to thank Robert Hager, author of Doing Magick, for introducing me to this interesting term.

Two Tools For the Eclectic Magician

Working within the confines of a magical tradition has its advantages. One of those advantages is that members are usually given a map of the magical terrain that will be traversed, where already devised rituals are dispensed, magical implements are specifically detailed, entities/powers are enumerated and world views/paradigms are advocated. This does not mean that one’s journey through the magical terrain of a given tradition will be easy. It does, however, mean that the map provided by the tradition will offer its members a means by which they can locate themselves within a magical terrain as well as indicate the pathways by which the landscape may be traversed. Having recognized the usefulness of such maps, I have, over the course of several years, explored various magical traditions in the hopes of finding a system of magical praxis that would provide me with a map or schematic for doing magic. Despite my best efforts, my personal world view has in each instance prohibited me from feeling a sense of compatibility with any particular magical system and the world view it espouses. This state of affairs has made my magical journey an incredibly slow and difficult endeavor. Much like the Borg in the Star Trek universe who go about assimilating life forms into the Collective, I have had to learn to incorporate into my magical repertoire various magical elements that are compatible with the world view or paradigm that I find myself hosting at any given time. As an eclectic magician, I am ever vigilant to discover magical elements that I can incorporate into my ever so slowly expanding magical inventory. I know I am not alone in this endeavor. It is for this reason that I wish to present below two magical items that I have recently constructed. I do not expect these two items to be duplicated by other seeking eclectics, however. Rather, I hope that by sharing these two items I can generate some ideas that will assist the eclectic magician on his or her own magical journey.

The first item is designed to be a home for a servitor who will assist me in penetrating nebulous situations with both insight and foresight. It was constructed from corn starch clay and shaped and painted to look like an open book. On the two pages that lie open I have painted the words “insight” (left) and “foresight” (right) in sigilized form. I used yellow to draw the “insight” sigil on account that this mental ability appears (to me) to be an air element and blue to draw the “foresight” sigil since this mental ability appears (to me) to be a water element. On the back of the book (bottom of object) I have painted a sigilized form of the servitor’s name in green (not shown for security purposes). The color green was chosen on account that the servitor is an entity created from a mixture of both air (yellow) and water (blue) elements.

  

The second item is designed to trap all negative energies within my house and permit their disposal. It too was constructed from corn starch clay. As the object’s initial objective is to trap the negative energies in my home, it was given a triangular shape (viz., triangle of invocation and spirit trap) and painted black (an absorbing color that is associated with banishing and protection).  To help lure the negative energies to the object some personal artifacts from each of the members of my family were included within the object during its formation. Also, each of the object’s three sides displays the name of a family member in sigilized form in its corresponding astrological color (not pictured for security reasons). The top of the object was constructed in such a fashion that it would easily and securely hold an egg. Once the object draws the negative energies to itself they will become absorbed by the egg, which then can be discarded.

Ray Sherwin and Sigils Reconsidered

Sigil magick, it would seem, has been an integral part of Chaos magick since its beginnings in the late 1970s. One of the first published works to deal with sigils at some length is Ray Sherwin’s The Book of Results. In this work Sherwin articulates not only a methodology for sigil magick but offers up some theoretical discussion as to how sigil magick works. Having recently reread Sherwin’s discussion, I have come to see a disparity between Sherwin’s method of sigil “implantation” within the subconscious and his understanding of the nature of the subconscious.

For Sherwin, who adheres to a psychological model of magick, the source of magickal efficacy is the subconscious mind, not some external “gaseous invertebrate” dwelling within the ether. As such, it behooves the reader to comprehend Sherwin’s understanding of the subconscious and its relation to the conscious mind. Much of what Sherwin sets forth concerning the nature of the mind is taken from or based upon a model of the mind known as dianetics. Simply put, dianetics states that at certain moments of unconsciousness or extreme emotional stress the analytic (conscious) mind shuts down and the reactive (subconscious) mind takes over, recording the events of which the conscious mind is oblivious. Dianetics thus provides Sherwin with a model to begin working with the true source of magical power (i.e., the subconscious).

It is Sherwin’s contention that one’s desires can be made to manifest by imbedding them within the subconscious. Unlike the unintentional imbedding of images within the subconscious mind at times of unconsciousness/stress, one’s desires/intents can be intentionally lodged within the subconscious through a particular trance state that paralyzes the conscious/analytic mind. Because the subconscious lacks the ability to reason, Sherwin proffers that one’s desires are best attained when they are first converted into symbols/glyphs/sigils prior to their implantation into the subconscious mind.

Now, my problem with Sherwin is not with his methodology per se, but with what I perceive to be an inconsistency between Sherwin’s technique and his general understanding of the subconscious mind. Sherwin’s technique of sigil embedding is based upon the premise that the subconscious mind only receives images or content at certain times – namely, during certain trance states (intentional imbedding) and during certain moments of stress or unconsciousness. However, this seems to fly in the face of his understanding of the nature of the subconscious as an ever-present recording device.

Sherwin writes,

In effect this (i.e., the unconscious mind) is the only part of the mind which is constantly vigilant and aware, even during deep sleep and unconsciousness. It is a store of memory inconceivable in size. No experience, no matter how often repeated or how insignificant, is unrecorded. All the data about your past are there …. (Sherwin, p. 34; italics mine)

This position clearly militates against the need for a technique to embed a symbol/glyph/ sigil within the subconscious mind. Being that the subconscious mind is all-seeing/all-recording the use of trance or ritual to deliver a message to the subconscious becomes superfluous. Even the necessity of the conversion of intent into a glyph become suspect, as the subconscious mind would have recorded the thought-intent prior to the glyphs construction.

Working With Forgotten Sigils

©All rights reserved Katielouise at Flickr

I FORGOT....

This last winter I found several sigils in a coat pocket that I created the previous winter. I had totally forgotten about them. Not only did I forget that they existed, I forgot the intentions behind their creations. At first, I was rather disappointed that I had not worked the sigils. I mean, I had let an entire year go by without taking steps to manifest my intentions. However, I soon realized that the “losing” of the sigils for a year might actually help me to work with them. Since I had no idea what they symbolized, it would not be difficult for me to activate them without bringing their intentions to conscious thought. In addition, having absolutely no conscious awareness of their intents, I would, once they were fired, be less likely to obsess about their results. (The intentions to these sigils were with the sigils, but separate from them. Thus, I can, when I actually get around to activating them, reflect upon the success or failure of my intentions to manifest. I have not looked at the intentions since I initially sigilized them, however. I wonder if any have already become manifest).

Having come to see the benefits of possessing sigils whose intents are completely forgotten, I have recently taken up the task of devising a method for working with forgotten sigils. Working with forgotten sigils is certainly not a new idea and I am sure that others have come up with methods for working with them that are more artful than what I have come up with here. Nevertheless, I set my ideas down here to record my initial thoughts concerning the matter and to provide some ideas for those who have interest in working with sigils.


METHOD

Materials needed: stack of 3x5 index cards, package of post-it notes (any size, but no bigger than 3x5), small box that will accommodate the index cards, envelope(s), an utensil for drawing sigils.

Step 1. Create a sigil and transfer it to a post-it note (some sigils will obviously not lend themselves to be treated in this manner) and adhere the post-it note with the sigil to one side of a 3x5 index card.

Step 2. Write the sigil’s intention on another post- it note and adhere it to the side of the index card opposite the sigil.

Step 3. Place the index card in a small box with the intention facing down and the sigil facing up.

Step 4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the box contains several sigils (this need not be done at one sitting but can be accomplished over time.)

Step 5. When you decide to activate a sigil (you should allow some time to pass since the creation of the first sigil to aid in the forgetting process), take all or a few of the index cards (depending on the number of cards in the box) out of the box and carefully mix them up. Be sure that the sigil remains facing up or towards you and that you do not inadvertently remove a sigil or intention post-it from their card.

Step 6. Look at the first sigil. If you think you recognize the intent, return it to the box. DO NOT CHECK THE REVERSE SIDE TO VERIFY. This will only reinforce a connection between intent and sigil and make it harder to forget. If you do not recognize the intent, set it aside and place the remaining cards back in the box.

Step 7. Remove the sigil from the 3x5 index card you set aside and activate it any way you so chose. When finished, dispose of the sigil by burning, etc.

Step 8. Remove the post-it note with the intent from the same 3x5 index card WITHOUT LOOKING AT IT and place it in an envelope. Determine the date that is four weeks from the time that you put the intention in the envelope and write this on the envelope. When this date arrives, take the intention out of the envelope and record it in your magical diary (or however you record your workings). This will keep you free from obsessive thoughts for at least four weeks.

Note: You can reuse the envelope by crossing out dates and adding new ones and index cards once the sigil and intent have been removed.

A Successful Sigil

During the first week of July I posted a sigil and asked my readers to assist me in its activation (you can read the original post here). In that post I stated that I would, after the month had ended, reveal the intention of the sigil and relay whether the sigilized intention was or was not made manifest. So, here is what it was all about.


THE SIGIL AND THE INTENTION

The sigil was created by writing out my intention, discarding all the repeating letters and then using the remaining letters to form the symbol that appears within the original post. Unfortunately, I am now unable to find the sheet of paper that contained my intention but it ran something like - “I will that at least five new individuals begin to follow my blog before the end of July, 2010.”

I chose the words "at least five" to indicate that five followers would be the minimum accepted. I chose the words "new individuals begin to follow my blog" to preclude the four readers I had at the time from being counted among the five. I chose the words "before the end of July, 2010," to limit the experiment to the month of July and prevent its activation by future readers (e.g., being activated in July of 2011, 2012, etc.).

RESULTS

The sigil experiment was a success. At the time I activated the sigil and asked others to do so as well, there were four followers of my blog. Within three weeks time The Magical Lotus had three new followers. All I needed was two more. On July 30th something rather strange happened. My Blogger account reported that two more followers had been added, but only one visibly appeared on the Google Friend Connect application on the blog itself. In other words, my account said that I had X number of followers whereas my blog showed X-1 followers. If this discrepancy is to be explained by someone anonymously following the blog ( I don’t know if this is possible), then the number of new followers during the month of July would have been at least five on the 30th. Irrespective of this dilemma, another individual began to follow my blog on the 31st. With this additional follower the Magical Lotus clearly and without a doubt received at least five new followers within the month of July (I say at least five because I have no way of knowing if anyone started to follow my blog during the designated time by way of methods other than Google Friend Connect and NetworkedBlogs. For instance, anyone who is following my blog by direct link cannot be accounted for. This did not occur to me at the time I fired the sigil, however. Funny though...in retrospect I got exactly what I asked for).

SOME THINGS THAT MIGHT HAVE HINDERED THE EXPERIMENT

Even though I consider my sigil work to have been a success, several factors had the potential to thwart my intent. An important component of sigil magic is the idea that one should, after firing a sigil, avoid bringing the sigil and its intention into conscious awareness. The idea is to let the sigil sink deep into the subconscious where it can be effective. Because I was still working on the blog itself at this time, I inadvertently came upon the sigil several times, thus breaking the rule of “sigil avoidance.” Also, my doubts regarding the effectiveness of sigil magic certainly had the potential to hinder the experiment (that this doubt persists is strange given that I have had some success with prior sigils). My general feeling on the subject is that sigils are more likely to be effective with Self-Magic than with bringing about external events. In addition, I chose to have the sigil activated by means of a method I myself devised. The method of activation itself had the potential to be ineffectual. In spite of all this, the sigil worked like a charm!

WHAT I LEARNED

1) Sigils often work in spite of the many potential obstacles to its success.
2) Even the most basic of magical experiments can weave a nebulous web of events that are hard to interpret if notes are not taken along the way. So... TAKE NOTES NEXT TIME, KARMAGHNA!

Let's Do Some Blog Magic (Attention: this entry has uncharged encrypted content)

I have been rather intrigued by the notion of Internet magic so I thought I would give it a try. The experiment below is rather infantile compared to some of the stuff floating around in cyberspace, but a beginner must begin, well, at the beginning. Do not worry, the sigil below is extremely innocuous. I am simply asking to receive something of minor significance within the month of July, 2010. I have encrypted a date within the sigil below to prevent its activation at a later date by future readers (if there are any).

I ask your help in firing this sigil off. You can fire it with any method you prefer, but I would like you to consider trying a method I have devised and labeled "The Volumitus Method." The term Volumitus was formed by the combination of the Latin terms volucris (bird) and fremitus (humming). It is a crude attempt to mimic the English hummingbird. Why? Because when I was practicing the technique, the image of a hummingbird came to mind.

The Technique of The Volumitus Method:

Place your index fingers in your ears to plug them up. Breathe in deeply and begin to hum as you look at the sigil. The hum should be of a deep tone produced near the back of the throat, similar to the sound of Buddhist monks chanting the "m" sound at the end of "OM." Your humming should be a continuous sound. As you gaze at the sigil, just concentrate on the sound of the hum as it vibrates within your head. Keep producing this continuous hum for as long as you comfortably can. When you run out of breath and your hum stops, the sigil is fired. Turn your browser away from my blog and do whatever you like. Oh yeah, unplug your ears now.

I could explain the theory behind this technique, but my doing so might prevent some of you who do not buy into it from participating. Just do it! The technique does what it is intended to do.

After July has ended I will divulge my sigilized intention and comment on the effectiveness of this working.